Orionid meteor shower welcomes a spectacular natural light show
- Lori Lee WGOLV
- Oct 20, 2025
- 4 min read
The Orionid meteor shower peak begins tonight, which welcomes a spectacular natural light show that could see a flurry of shooting stars spawned by Halley's Comet brighten the dark, moonless sky.
According to Space.com, the 2025 Orionid meteor shower peak begins overnight on Oct. 20-21, when 10-20 shooting stars may be visible across the night sky from a point of origin known as a "radiant", located close to the red star Betelgeuse in the constellation Orion.
While tonight is the peak, Orionid shooting stars can be seen between October 2 and November 7 as Earth passes through the debris trail shed by comet 1P/Halley, according to the website.
When are the best times to spot the Orionid meteors?
One of the best times to spot Orionid meteors will be in the pre-dawn hours of October 21st, when the constellation Orion will be positioned high above the southern horizon in a moonless sky for viewers in the U.S. Because the shower peaks around the monthly new moon phase, there will be no natural light pollution to ruin the cosmic show, according to the Space.com website.
How to locate them -
According to Space.com, start by finding the red star Betelgeuse with a smartphone astronomy app. Next, choose a section of the sky 40 degrees away towards your local zenith, the point directly above. Keep in mind that your outstretched fist measures about 10 degrees in the night sky. In this area, meteor trails will appear longest.
Be sure to allow 20-30 minutes for your eyes to adapt to the dark, and use a red light if needed in order to avoid ruining your night vision.
Robert Lunsford of the American Meteor Society notes that there will still be plenty of meteor activity after the peak starts, so there's no need to worry if clouds appear to ruin the show that first early morning show -
"The Orionids will peak in the period of October 21-23," Lunsford told Space.com in an email. "Rates will fall very slowly after these dates so the mornings of October 24-26 will still provide hourly rates in excess of 10 per hour when viewing from rural dark skies. Note by then the radiant will have moved eastward into western Gemini so folks should not be surprised to see these meteors shooting from that constellation instead of Orion".
The Orionids aren't the only meteor shower active over the coming weeks.
The Northern Taurid and Southern Taurid meteor streams are both active right now, potentially leading to remarkable fireball events as they approach their individual peaks in early November.
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